Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2010-04-21-Speech-3-155"
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"en.20100421.7.3-155"2
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"Madam President, honourable Members, my colleague, Commissioner Piebalgs excuses himself. Unfortunately, he cannot be here with you today, so he has entrusted me with the task of taking this debate with you. Thank you for this opportunity to explain the Commission’s position on the use of cyanide for gold extraction in the European Union.
Nevertheless, the Commission is following technology development in the sector and, if alternative techniques emerge in the coming years, the debate might very well be reopened.
In the meantime, a good implementation of this directive is essential to guarantee the safety of these facilities and minimise the risk associated with their management. Let me also point out that Member States are responsible for deciding on whether to open gold mines on their territories.
The Commission’s role is to ensure full implementation of the directive and good implementation and enforcement is a priority.
Under the directive, the Member States are bound to provide the Commission with information on implementation no later than 2012 and we, in turn, are obliged to analyse and report on this basis.
That will obviously be the right time for us to assess the effectiveness of this approach and if, at that point, the current approach were found to be ineffective, we should not rule out the possibility of an outright ban.
In conclusion, I would like to insist on the importance of ensuring high waste-recycling rates and improved resource efficiency in the extraction sector. Even without considering the use of cyanide, mining for gold is far from kind to the environment.
To extract 1 g of gold, it is necessary to move and treat, on average, 5 000 kg of ore. The same amount can be obtained through the recycling of approximately 5 kg of old mobile phones. This example illustrates the importance of increasing the separate collection and recycling of waste – in this case, electronic and electrical waste which can contain gold and other similar precious metals. This is why resource efficiency is a priority for this Commission.
First, as the honourable Member knows, we have had a careful and very comprehensive study of the dramatic accident and the causes of it at Baia Mare in Romania in 2000 when a dam retaining toxic substances broke. The conclusions of that study were taken on board when the European Union adopted in 2006 a specific directive on the management of extracted waste.
The deadline for Member States to transpose this was only two years ago and it is still regarded as an up-to-date, proportionate and appropriate approach to the risk of using cyanide.
The directive includes several requirements to improve the safety of extractive waste management facilities and limit their impact on the environment.
Explicit and precise requirements are set on the construction and the management of waste facilities which have to be operated using the ‘best available technique’ concept.
A full accident prevention policy is required for the facilities in which toxic substances are treated or stored. Emergency plans to be used in case of accidents must be established, not only by the operator but also by the competent authorities. Clear information requirements are included in the directive if trans-boundary impacts are expected.
This legislation also incorporates requirements for the closure of extraction facilities, and for after closure. It includes the obligation to set up an underwritten financial guarantee for each installation before the beginning of the operation. The directive includes strict maximum limit values of cyanide concentration before this substance is stored in ponds for remaining residues to be broken down by oxidation, sunlight or bacteria.
In practice, in order to meet the strict limit values, it is necessary to install specific equipment destroying most of the cyanide before its storage in the pond.
To our best knowledge, unfortunately, no adequate alternatives to cyanide use for gold extraction exist on the market. In most European deposits, gold is bound with other metals meaning that a separation method is required. A total cyanide ban would imply stopping European extraction and consequently increase gold imports, often from countries with lower environmental and social standards."@en1
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